Well, I begin my third story ever. Wish me luck! Hope you guys enjoy it.
PROLOGUE
ANBU Black Ops... Dark... We're supposed to be the best... The elite... The first and last defense for Konoha... Feelings? No, those are unnecessary... Our sole objective is to complete the mission assigned to us; therefore, why should feelings exist in our hearts... They only give weakness and hold us down... They are merely something for our enemies to use against us... The only thing we need to keep in our hearts is... Sacrifice... A word that his been echoed in my mind since I was eight... Sacrifice... The noble duty which we ANBU must do... There is no I... There is the team, the we... Personal feelings will only deter us from the objective... My name? ANBU # 728, Captain, Squadron Leader of 43rd, Sector A... The assassination sector... My squad is the top in the sector – in total, second only to the Hokage's squad. Yes, the Hokage has an ANBU squad as well... Used only when the Hokage himself goes to fight. My direct leader? Danzo. Ultimately, yes, the Godaime Hokage – Tsunade-sama.
But that is immaterial... I serve Danzo, an inescapable fate, lest I sacrifice the entire village for my own cause and be labeled a Missing Nin... No, sacrifice is a noble duty:
"We are the elite... It us – the 800 of us who must sacrifice for the sake of the tens of thousands of civilians... It's the choice we're making – either we, the one percent suffer, or make them suffer... It is an honor to sacrifice for the sake of our village, and we must be proud. Remember, teamwork, sacrifice, and hard work... That is the only way to save ourselves, and, more importantly, that is the only way to save our country!" --quote from Danzo; 2300 hours, at annual ANBU inaugural address.
As for my life history? I was inducted into the ANBU root system at age eight. I would take the role of a normal genin boy at the academy, while receiving training in secret from Danzosama himself. My friends? I no longer have any friends... Faking my death as instructed, my so-called friends now believe I am dead... And in away I am... The old me has died... And ANBU #728 is now reborn. I still live in the very same apartment I did as a child... One of my beliefs is that all of us have a tale to tell... It us our lives... Our minuscule lives that have no particular importance... After all, we humans infest the earth by the hundreds of millions... What could one life mean? But each of us, in our own self, is important, as there is only one of us in the world... Each of our minuscule lives are interconnected... to form a bigger story... I am ANBU #728, age 21, and this is my story.
END PROLOGUE
I stood in the shadows, staring at the well-lit ground due to the full moon. However, I was in black, and the shadows covered me with room to spare. My eyes got the stats. 5 enemies – all mist. From their stance, jounin level estimated. I looked at the moon and estimated it three o' clock in the morning. I so don't have time for this.
"3 Red, you go and distract him."
"Gotcha."
Suddenly, the body stood still.
"3 Red... 3 Red!" the man whispered.
The man's head rolled to the ground and blood came in a pool to their feet.
"HOLY SH-"
I had to take out the loud mouth before any attention came. In a flash I came and stuck a kunai in his stomach. He coughed out blood. The others had dispersed, but I could sense they hadn't left. It was time to mess with their minds.
True, phisical fitness did matter in a shinobi fight, but the state of mind mattered more... And I intended to scare the hell out of them by setting an example.
Taking a kunai, I stabbed it in his stomach. The man looked at me with fear in his eyes. I pushed the kunai up right near his heart. As he screamed, I took out the gory kunai and pushed it through his head orally, grabbed his head, broke his neck making sure they all heard the loud crack, and snapped his back in two.
My kage bunshins killed the other ones in about ten seconds. Damn... I'm getting slow. Lost my time by three seconds.
"Danzo-sama. You called."
"Ah, yes, 728. I have a mission for you. A rather unusual one, but crucial. Your mission is to guard the Kazekage's sister from here to the lightning country. She is meant to be an envoy of peace, but ninjas may get to her on the journey... That is, guard her until you reach this city."
He showed a map. Looking at it, I saw the city he was talking about.
"I see... We are to kill her once we reach there..."
"No, only you. Your team will not accompany you on this one. You are an elite. I trust you will do a good job."
"When will the rebellion against the Sand begin?"
"As soon as I finish up a little detail with Orochimaru."
"Hai. Where am I to meet her?"
"You will meet her in three hours in training ground #4."
"Hai. I shall depart immediately."
Danzo nodded. "Oh, and 728."
I stopped and looked back. "Yes, Danzo-sama?"
"I'm glad to have been able to teach you."
Danzo-sama was like a father to me... I experienced everything with him. My family? As I said before... He is my family... I have no other. I need no other.
I was in an all black uniform with my white mask on. I had my katana packed and my kunai holster on my left leg along with the shuriken in my jacket. My ponytail was out, but it mattered not. Many in the ANBU had such hairstyles. I hurried to the training ground. From a tree, I saw who was supposed to be the Kazekage's sister. I confronted her.
"Identification." I demanded.
"Who are you to ask for mine?" she retorted.
"Identification, Madam."
She took her fan and made a huge gust. While the dust was there, she immediately went to me and had a kunai to my throat.
"Are you and ANBU who's supposed to be guarding me? Cuz you're not very good... Well, what can be expected from the Leaf shinobi?"
I came from behind and immediately incapacitated her; she stood on hands and knees. Taking out a thin slip, I muttered, "Thank you, Temari-san."
Panting, she said, "Shadow clone..." Damn it your jutsu speed is fast... And to be able to sense that minute chakra in such a small time... Jeez... Incredible.
Bowing, I said, "I am the ANBU member assigned to guard you, Temari-san. I will escort you from here to the Lightning country in approximately 3 weeks. Percent of danger on the journey – 77. For all precautions, please, wear this tracker so we may be informed of you location in case of separation."
"I'm not wearing anything. I can defend myself just fine, thank you. Now let's go."
Bowing, I said, "Hai."
Damn bastard...
Looking at her leg, I saw the tracker I placed on her during the little skirmish firmly stay.
"Hey, you!"
I bowed. "#727, Temari-san."
"Whatever. How long is the journey again?"
"3 weeks, Temari-san."
"We're going to stop by towns, right?"
"Hai. 3 towns and 1 city."
"All right..."
We kept constant guard, as ordered by the Kazekage himself. I had all the information in a tiny pamphlet I kept with me.
"Do not allow her to go shopping, as you will arrive two weeks late. Also, keep constant guard on her. I would request some sort of tracking device in case you separate. She will be a little 'gung-ho', but that shouldn't be too much of a problem.
--The Kazekage, Gaara
PS Guard her well or I will kill you myself."
I smiled underneath my mask, wondering just how strong she was to be so 'gung-ho.'
"What are you looking at?"
"Mission specifications..." I told my client.
"You know, I bet you wouldn't be acting so tough if you kissed a girl once in a while."
"Acting tough?"
"Yeah! O, we have to put a tracker on you. There's a 77 chance of danger, Madam." She said putting on a deep voice.
"I am an ANBU – a tool. I merely follow orders, Temari-san."
"How the hell would your boss know anything about me?"
"It was Kazekage-sama who requested I place a tracker on you."
"Kuso." she cursed under her breath. "Gaara, when I get home, I am gonna..."
"Have you kissed a boy?" I asked.
She turned solemn. "No... I haven't."
"Come talk to me once you do..."
"I'm not going to either." she said more firmly.
I looked at her. Yup, she was different compared to most girls, all right... Way different. "Good... It would save the boy you were to marry a lot of trouble as well.."
"You have a very dry humor, you know that."
I smiled.
"I thought ANBU weren't supposed to have feelings... At least, those that were raised from the ROOT."
I don't... This is merely to gain your trust... "I wasn't raised from ROOT." There was something odd about her... Something strange yet familiar... Did I know her? Of course not... My entire conscious life I haven't known anyone called Temari... It then hit me – conscious life. Was she in my dream? Was it a memory seal? Did I actually know her? My reason finally kicked in. The odds were low – 5. I was an ANBU captain... For someone to place a memory seal on me without I knowing would require tremendous skill. As for she being in my dream, that was simply ridiculous. But it stayed with me. Who could've done it... No one next to an ANBU member or the Godaime herself could've possibly done it... I shook my head. What the hell was I thinking. I needed a coffee break; yes, that was what I needed.
"Why won't you kiss?" I asked curiously.
"Because... The one I loved is dead..."
"Wouldn't the one you loved want you to be happy?"
She shook her head. "I don't even know if he loved me back... I was too much of a coward to tell him... And partly, I didn't know I was in love... Besides, he's the only one who could've made me happy."
I shrugged. "Well, it all depends on your outlook on life. I'm not one to control how you think and act. " I said lazily.
"You're right... You can't... So why bother..."
"Yup..." I looked at the clouds. They fascinate me... So carefree, not a trouble in the world... Man, would I love to be a cloud...
"You're staring at the clouds?"
"Yup..."
Suddenly, she saw him take out his weapon. Calming down, she, too, sensed some chakra signatures. Man... To have that acute senses while talking... This guy's good. But there was a flaw – if he took out a weapon already, he would directly be telling the enemy that he had noticed them... It would be asking for a confrontation. She smiled to herself. So he's already used kage bunshin... He gets into action pretty quickly... But it doesn't mean I haven't... A kunai was thrown at her, but the ANBU members didn't bother to protect her; when it hit 'her', only sand was there. Suddenly, a large cyclone was made, and yell could be heard.
"SUMMONING NO JUTSU!"
I looked at Temari. Damn it... She looks so damn familiar... Do I... know her? But I had to keep my mind on the battle. My kage bunshin immediately killed someone with the kage mane jutsu, and only three were left. I went to Temari; obviously, she was the top priority. My squad of bunshins could take care of the others. I stood crouched in a tree from where I could see her perfectly. She could see me, but it didn't matter. As long as the enemy didn't know, I was fine.
An enemy came, but before he could reach, he was trapped in a Kage Mane, and I put a kunai to his throat in no time.
Kage Mane... No way... "You're from the Nara clan?"
"Whatever gave you that idea..." I sarcastically remarked.
Surprisingly, she smiled.
I looked at her. "What? You like Naras or something?"
"I liked one..."
"I see..."
They continued on their way. I could've interrogated the attackers, but that wasn't part of my mission... She was going to die anyway – my job was merely to guard her. I had no personal affection towards her, and so, her well being was not my concern.
"You're too emotional for an ANBU."
"I'm different." I said.
"Didn't you go through emotion training?"
"I can kill without hesitation. You simply haven't seen me fight."
"Psh... Yeah right."
I shrugged. What did I care?
"Who was he?"
She looked at me and shook her head.
"You don't have to tell me..." Damn it... The next second, my head seemed to explode. Suddenly, I had a large migraine. Falling to the ground, I expected to get hurt, but instead I landed on something soft... But that was the least of my worries. Strange images were going through my head... Images that, like Temari, seemed familiar yet strange.
FLASHBACK
"Beginning today you all are real ninjas... But this is only the beginning. You are merely genin. You will be assigned in groups of three to a jounin ninja. This ninja will be your sensei, and you will follow what he says..."
END FLASHBACK
Strange memories of he and three others came to him – a bossy blond girl would never shut her damn mouth, a fat guy who had a good heart but just had to eat, and a man who would never stop smoking. Damn it... I know them... Who are they... What does this mean... They're... From my dreams, perhaps? May be from childhood dreams – they seem familiar because I forgot, so they had to be from my childhood... Yes...
Regaining consciousness, I saw a girl looking over me, smiling to herself. I realized, thankfully, my ANBU mask was still on.
"Seems you fainted... Do you know why?"
I somehow felt I could trust her... for now. But my reason prevented me. I was on a mission. What the hell was I thinking... Jeez, I really, really needed that break. Getting up, I said, "Thank you for preventing my fall, Temari-sa --"
"Temari."
"Thank you, Temari. I had a headache... Well, three missions back to back with no sleep... That's what you get."
She smiled. "You're welcome. Hey, listen... I'm sorry for being an asshole back there. You were only doing it for my safety, and, well, better safe than sorry. We only have to live with each other for three weeks, and then we'll be out of each other's lives forever... Why not cooperate for three weeks and get it done and over with?"
I nodded. "Agreed."
Well, that's it for the first chapter! What'd you guys think? Too gory? Well, if you thought that, then though, cuz I got a lot more gore comin' up. Until next time.